Bargain-loving mum transforms her stairs for just £40 using brilliant hack
A seriously savvy mum has saved hundreds of pounds by using second hand items from eBay to renovate her home.
The mum-of-eight was desperate to give her staircase a make over but the cost of the job was eye-watering. Instead Emma Jane decided to combine her DIY skills and her eye for a good deal and did the renovation herself.
With a little help from social media and eBay she completed the job without spending a fortune. The mum has since shared her tips with fellow bargain hunters on Facebook group DIY on a Budget.
Completing the transformation in 2019, the mum said: "No words needed! I absolutely love my stairs." Since revealing her work of art, Emma Jane from Gloucestershire's post amassed thousands of likes and comments from fans eager to recreate the project in their own homes.
Before: Her staircase needed a little TLC (MirrorPix)
Emma said she stripped it all to start afresh (MirrorPix)One group member wrote: "Love this. I've got the same wall paper as my feature wall in my bedroom - absolutely love it." Another responded: "Omg this is so beautiful, perfect how you got the match like right on! Love it x."
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When Emma tried this hack a few years ago the wallpaper cost £13.99, however a similar paper now on ebay would only set you back £9.95 a roll.
Speaking to Mirror at the time, Emma has now revealed the secrets to her bargain renovation. "I cut all the paper before I applied it to the stairs which I found easier - it was quite easy matching it up to be honest," she said. "I sanded my steps, undercoated them and then used satinwood. I used some mod podge over the paper on the steps to keep it safe from the kids - I have eight children altogether."
It took six weeks in total to do (MirrorPix)"In total, I would say it cost me no more than £40, the wallpaper was from eBay for £10.49 a roll - I used two in total, including one along with the satinwood. Altogether it took me six weeks to do though as I didn't have work."
"It's not completely finished yet as we are waiting for some fallen tree branches to dry out to become the handrail," the creative mum added. "I also need to add the finishing touches of photos to the walls."
The end result has had more than 18,000 likes on social media (MirrorPix)
Emma's work of art (MirrorPix)"The gate is just an old one that we got from Facebook for free. We upcycled it and fitted it to the stairs, much better than a child's safety gate," she explained. As for the basket - she said she picked it up for just £2 at a local car boot.
"Looks great. Where did you get the basket from?" one interested member of the group asked - to which Emma replied, "a car boot, £2 total bargain".
Responding to the incredible response on the back of her post, Emma said she's been left "overwhelmed". "Thank you everyone! I am completely shocked and overwhelmed with the number of likes and comments!," she wrote. "I don't think I've ever seen this many likes on a post before."
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